Science in the paintings

Organising knowledge - Yolŋu classification

The Yolŋu world is [also] divided into things
which are walngamirr (life-having) and
things that are walngamiriw (life
without).

There are three different kinds of 'life-having' things:
things that move themselves, including the sun and celestial bodies, fire
and water; things that breath and reproduce, including all plants and animals
except humans; and humans.

The category of living things is further divided on the basis
of three questions:

"Nhädhuwal?" (What
is this?),
"Nhaku dhuwal?" (Whats this for?) and "Wanhanguwuy dhuwal?"(Where
does this come from?)

Yolŋu generally agree on the existence
of nine sets of living things:

dharpa plants with woody stems.

mulmu plants without woody stems.

warrakan all land or freshwater mammals
and reptiles except snakes, plus birds.

bäpi all
snakes, legless lizards and worms.

miyapunu marine turtles and marine
animals with bones.

maranydjalk stingrays and sharks.

guya fish.

maypal shellfish, crustaceans and
some insect larvae.

guku native bees and bee products.

A number of species are known only by their own names and
are not grouped with others e.g. centipedes, spiders, trepang, sea urchins
and other insects. Also there are whole groups of insects that are known
only by a single term e.g. cicadas, grasshoppers, butterflies

Further subdivisions are made within four of the sets of
living things:

The second method of classifying relates to the uses
that things have. Two major categories result: maranhu (food) and mirritjin medicine.
Food can be further subdivided as follows:

Maranhu:

- Ngatha
(vegetable food and honey)

- ngatha
(all root foods,nuts and the growth centres of palms)

- borum (fruit)

- Guku (honey)

- Gonyil
(meat and eggs)

- Divided according to
the same sets of living things listed as numbers 3,5,6,7 and 8 and
subdivisions of these

The third way of describing differences between natural
species relates them to the places where they are found:

retjapuy belonging
to the monsoon forest or junglediltjipuy belonging to the
open eucalyptus forestbaralapuy belonging to sand
dune countrygulunbuy belonging to
the freshwater holes, swamps and their fringesrangipuybelonging
to the beaches

Fish are known by a number of habitats identified in the
water:

garrwarpuy guya fish
that live near the surfacengoypuy guya fish that live
near the bottommayaŋbuyguya fish that live in the riversraypinybuy guya fish that live
in fresh watergundapuy guya fish that
live among reefs and rocks

There are at least ten categories of habitat recognised in
which maypal (shellfish and crustaceans) can be found, and a number
of these have subcategories. For example, one of the ten groups is that
of maypal associated with rocks called gundapuy maypal.
There are four distinct sets of these:

gundapuy maypal those
attached to rocks and reefswarraŋulpuy
maypal those that move over the outer surfaceslirrapuy maypal those that move
around the edges of rocksdjinawapuy maypal those attached beneath
rocks or inside coral

1 The information here has been adapted with permission from: Rudder, J.,
(1999)The
Natural World of the Yolŋu The Aboriginal people from North East Arnhem
Land, Restoration House.. This book is available from Restoration
House, email: jtr@rosella.apana.org.au